Robot Parade

This is our Sony Dream Machine clock radio, which we would recommend to anyone currently in the alarm clock market.

About a month ago, the kids figured out how to slide coins into a little opening in the CD player, pumping it full of  spare change until it didn't work any more and sounded just like a piggy bank.   To begin this week's activity, the kids and I used the tool set Sam had received as a gift from my sister to open the radio and look inside.
My wife was clear that if we were to open the radio, we should really try to remove the coins and repair it.  The kids and I agreed, but we kind of had that feeling you get bringing your rabid pet squirrel to the vet: you know it's going to end badly for the squirrel, but you're secretly excited, too. Well, similarly to how you can't wait turn that dead squirrel into twelve handmade fish hooks and a fuzzy coat collar lining, we were dying to turn our Dream Machine carcass into... robot parts!

"In a future time, children will work together...to build a giant cyborg!"

The idea was to fashion robot suits out of scrap pieces of giant bubble wrap, decorating them in a robotly fashion with the guts of the clock radio and a bunch of hot glue.  I should mention that I had been prepping the kids for this day by showing them this youtube video featuring my favorite kids song, Robot Parade by They Might Be Giants.  Oddly, my kids love that boring video.  Even more oddly, they absolutely love this disturbing, unrelated video. Our plan was to hold our own Robot Parade.

Complicating the project was the fact that the kids had recently come down with high fevers, sniffles, and coughs.  Still, they gave it their best shot, and we managed to make some hats and decorate some flags for our Parade before crying, sniffling, and whining took over.  We did early naps.

"wave the flags that the robots made"

During nap time, I decided the kids weren't probably in good enough shape to sit through much more craft time, so I put together some suits and robot crown hats.  It was a lot of fun, even though that damned hot glue really is hot on the hands.

When they woke up from their naps, the kids had a really good stretch before eventually remembering they were actually super sick.  We had the Robot Parade song on repeat with the volume up loud, parading up and down the hallway and around the furniture.  We brought the remaining robot materials to the neighbors, and later their little boy came to parade with us in a suit that conveniently featured a helmet with face protection.  Not a bad idea, given that my kids were exhaling pure SARS by that point.

"Robot Parade, Robot Parade.  Robots obey what the children say."

Fun Rating: 9 out of 10.  There were lots of fun steps (take apart the clock, build the suits, make the flags, do the parade, etc) that made it cool for 34 year olds, 3 year olds, and 20 month olds.  The suits are still sitting around and I think the kids will keep playing with them. Plus, I learned that my kids love parades, and those are easy to do whenever.  I wish they had been feeling better, but having something to do kept all our minds off it for a while.  Not to mention that we mined $2.90 in change and a crumpled post-it note out of the radio.